The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1887-12-01
THE STORY OF THE FIGHT.
A Hot Campaign-A Divided Negro Vote
The Anti's Victorious.
From, the Ne,o York Herald.


The Anti's Victorious.
From. the Ne,o York Herald.
ATLANTA, Ga, Nov. 26, 18S7.-The
people of this city voted on the question
6f prohibition to-day and defeated it.
The election follows one of the most
exciting political campaigns ever wit
messed in Georgia. An extreme of bit
terness, running often into personalities,
marked it. Its excitement reached q
climax last night when thousands of
voters marched and bivouacked in the
streets to be ready for an early advance
upon the polls.
The Piedmont exposition did not close
until the 22d of October, and both sides
agreed that during the progress of the
exposition nothing whatever should be
done by either side, as it would mar the
unity of the citizens in their enthusiastic
support of the exposition.
Both sides plunged into the fight with
wonderful activity as soon as the exposi'
ton was over. In two days after the
exposition closed the fight was on in all
its fury, and excited more interest and
activity than had ever been shown in
campaign before in this city. For over
q month the citizens have been engaged
in the contest.
Meetings have been held almost every
night, and local speakers and visiting
orators have stumped the county from
end to end of the city and every cross
road in the county. Early in the cam
paign the prohibitionists leased the largest
warehouse in the city and fitted it up
with seating capacity for 5000 people.
Almost nightly that building has been
filled, and such scenes of wild enthusl-
asm are rarely witnessed.
Among the prominent prohibition
speakers who plunged fearlessly into the
fight early in the campaign was United
States Senator A. Fl. Colquitt and Mr.. ii.
w. Grady. These we're assisted by
almost every minister in the city, who
preached prohibition from their pulpits
Sunday after Sunday to deeply interested
congregations. Prominent among the
preachers who led the prohibition fight
in Atlanta were Rev. Drs. J. 3. Haw-
thorne, II. G. Morrison and j. W. Lee.
These three ministers entered into the
fight with wonderful zeal, spoke night
after night, and in almost every precinct
in the county. The most prominent
leaders of the ants were Senator Joseph
E. Brown, Captain E. P. Howell and
Captain John B. Goodwin. Both sides
hall full campaign funds and managed
their respective causes for all they were
worth.
The negro vote was the bone of con-
tention, and was the balance of power.
Each side made the most strenuous
endeavors to secure it in every way pos.
sible. The negroes were considerably
divided on the subject, though majority
of them voted with the anti-prohibition-
lists.
One of the features of the contest has
been the active part taken by many
women of the city. Several of the
churches organized committees from
among their female members, who took
an active part in the campaign. They
organized the women of the colored
churches into societies, and met With
them and prayed with them day alter
day. The result of their work was shown
to-day by the appearance of large mum.
bers of women at the polls with blue
badges. They served hot coffee and
at every polling place, and
conducted prayer meetings and singing
in the open air.
Fulton county, in which Atlanta is
located, voted two years ago on the same
question, and went for prohibition by a
majority of 22S out of about 5000 votes.
The registration this time exceeds that
of last year by 1000 votes and this excess
gave the doubtful figures for either side
to estimate on during the campaign,
The principal fight made on prohibi.
ton during the campaign was that it did
not prohibit, and that intoxicating drinks
could be openly purchased in number
of places throughout the city which paid
taxes to the United States government
for the sale of whiskey. Thousands of
gallons have been sent in each month
from cities around Atlanta from which it
was almost as easy to get a jug as it was
at bars in the city. The antis claim that
prohibition injured the city, which was
yielding $4,000 a year in whiskey
licenses, without decreasing in the slight
est the amount of whiskey sold in the
city.
The prohibitionists, on the other hand,
claimed that Atlanta has never had pro.
hibition; that while it was 80 voted
years ago, the licenses then existing did
not expire, some of them, until almost
year ago, and that since that time the
domestic wine clause in the local option
bill allowed many places in the city by
which the law could be easily evaded.
This was, however, remedied by the last
legislature, which put q license OF sl0,OOo
on all wine rooms, which license will 60
nto effect after January /.
The prohibitionists claimed that with
vine rooms out of the city there would
,e no places for the easy evasion of the
aw if officers would properly enforce it.
The result to-day indicates public
opinion on the subject. The city has
zone wet by probably 1000 majority.
areat enthusiasm prevails in the streets.
Men, women and children are miDgling
n the mammoth procession that is
marching about the town. Thousands OF
legroes, wearing grotesque garbs Of red
Material, are yelling like coyotes. Bands
re playing, irecrackers are exploding
nd red banners are waving.
The ministers and others prominent in
be prohibitory movement are chagrined
t the unexpected result.
= Judge PRESLEY, at Greenyille, has